Folding table



(No Model.)

IL-P. BASSETT. FOLDING TABLE.

No. 510,232. Q I "Patefited Dec. 5,1893.

INVENTOR nnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnn v.

' w A s H N a 1 c m n c4 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

EDWARD F. BASSETT, OF SEYMOUR, CONNECTICUT.

FOLDING TABLE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 510,232, dated December 5, 1893.

Application filed March 28, 1 893- Sefia1No 467 953- (No model.) I

To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, EDWARD F. BASSETT, a citizen of the United States, residing at Seymour, in the county of New Haven and State of Connecticut, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Folding Tables; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same.

Myinvention relates to the class of folding tables illustrated and described in my former Patent No. 485,855, dated November 8, 1892, and has for its object to simplify and cheapen, and at the same time to generally improve the construction and general operation of the table, it being required in order to make a table of this class practical that said table may be either round or square, that while retaining the folding principle it may be made sufficiently high for a card table without making the legs either jointed or extensible, so thatthe table shall stand perfectly firm when set up, be free from obstructions on the under side so that card players may sit With their knees under the table, and that the legs shall fold under the table compactly when not in use. a

With these ends in view I have devised the simple and novel construction which I will now describe referring by numbers to the accompanying drawings forming part of this specification, in which- Figure 1 is an inverted plan view of my novel table two of the legs being in the folded position and two extended; Fig. 2 a section on an enlarged scale of one corner of the table showing one of the legs in the extended position; Fig. 3 a section on the line a: a; in

Fig. 2, and Fig. at is a detail View on an enlarged scale of a locking brace and spring.

1 denotes the table top which I have shown as square with rounded corners, but which may be made round if preferred. In practice Ipreferably make the top of veneers of wood so as to avoid danger of warping.

2 denotes the legs which are independent of each other and are hinged diagonally opposite to each other and slightly oE-set so as to fold inward from opposite directions side by side. Two of the legs diagonally opposite to each other are provided at their mid-length on their outer sides with recesses 3, and the other two legs which are also diagonally-opposite to each other are provided at their midlength with recesses on their inner sides, not shown in the drawings, so that when the legs having recesses 3 are folded as shown in Fig. 1 said recesses will lie in line with each other and will just receive the legs having recesses on their inner sides, the latter recesses being preferably provided so as to cause the outer pair of legs to fold down closely upon the other legs as is fully described in my said former patent. v

4 denotes rigid locking braces the central portions of which have a sliding connection to the legs and the ends of which are pivoted on the under side of the top. In the present instance I have shown the ends of the braces as provided with outwardly turned ends 5 which turn freelyin cleats 6 on the under side of the table. The central portion of each brace, i. e. the portion connected to the leg, slides upon the inner side of the leg, with which it is held in contact bya rod 7 which is rigidly secured to the leg. A notch 8 is provided on the inner side of the leg which is engaged by the brace when the leg is at the extended position as clearly shown in Fig. 3, the brace being retained in the notch by means of a spring 9. This spring I preferably provide with an inward curve 10 which bears directly upon the brace when the latter is lying in the notch but which renders it easier to move the brace out of the notchwhen pressure is applied to the brace from the outer side. Suppose the table to be set up. To fold it the operator simplypresses the spring braces out of notches 8 and folds the legs inward, care being taken of course to fold the legs having the notches upon their outer sides first, after which the other legs are folded down upon them. WVhen the legs are all folded they lie closely under the table which may be carried about without danger of their swinging out- Ward.

Having thus described my invention, I claim In combination with a table top, legs hinged to the under side thereof at each corner, the said spring having an ofi set 10, as and for to legs of opposite corners folding alongside of the purpose set forth.

each other, a locking device for each leg con- In testimony whereof I affix my signature in sisting of a simple wire bail having its ends presence of two witnesses.

5 pivoted in cleats 6 with its bail portion conw fined in a groove in the leg bya rod 7 secured EDWARD BASbET to said leg, a notch 8 above the groove to re- Witnesses: oeive the bail, when the leg is extended, and SAMUEL P. CAMP,

a spring 9 forconfiningsaid bail in said notch, GUSTAV J. FABER. 

